i6 FARM FRIENDS AND FARM FOES 



Sunflower Family 



Meadows and pastures that have been seeded for a long 

 time are liable to become infested by a number of vigorous 

 weeds of the great Sunflower or Thistle family {Composite), 

 some of which prove exceedingly troublesome unless they 

 are carefully eradicated on their first appearance. One of 

 the most conspicuous of these is the Oxeye 

 Daisy or Whiteweed. In many of the New 

 England and Middle states whole fields are 

 whitened by it in early summer. The 

 blossoms are beautiful, but their beauty is 

 not likely to be appreciated by the farmer 

 who sees them take the place of a good 

 crop of hay. The plant is so distinctive 

 on account of the character of the blos- 

 soms, with their large yellow centers sur- 

 rounded by rays of long white petals, that 

 it is at once recognized by every one. The 

 flowers are borne on stems one to two feet 

 high, several of the stems generally devel- 

 oping from a single root. 

 Cone-flower ^ jg easy to see why the Oxeye Daisy 



is a dangerous intruder in meadow lands. Its period of 

 blossoming extends from May to November, so that it is 

 able to ripen an enormous number of seeds. These are 

 readily scattered and soon develop into little plants that 

 are rarely noticed the first season. They blossom quickly 

 the second season, and continue as perennials thereafter. 

 Each plant spreads out to form new crowns, and thus crowds 

 out the surrounding grasses. The fresh leaves, stems, and 

 flowers are distasteful to cattle, and very few insects will 

 eat any part of the plant. 



